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Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

Hey guys,

I am thinking about going to the Jamey Aebersold summer jazz workshop this year. They have a 2-day "anyone can improvise" workshop which can then be followed by a week-long camp (including theory, aural training, master classes, and group / combo sessions) and would be interested in hearing about anyone's first-hand experience.

Also, I know there are several of these camps across the country but in my research I found that Jamey's is the biggest with the lowest (best) student to teach ratio. Also, they typically have 20-30 sax teachers per workshop (or so I'm told) which is ten times the number of the other camps I researched.

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

The Vermont jazz camp for adults (just google jazz in vermont and you'll find it) gets rave reviews from it "campers". From what I hear it's a great "hang" and is so aesthetically pleasant that they get a very high rate of of return campers every year.

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

I attended the Aebersold camp a few years back. Well worth the money, and on top of what you learn, they had faculty concerts during every lunch, and for three hours every night. Just make sure you have your major and dorian minor scales down as a minimum to get the most out of it.

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

Over the last three years I have attended the Jazz Sax Camp in Ottawa, headed up by Mike Tremblay. Over the years he has arranged a series of master classes with the likes of Petr Cancura and Kirk MacDonald. The classes have been built around quartets/quintets, along with improvisation and working toward a recorded performance.

The weekly sessions focus on improvisation, sight reading, transposing chords into diatonic harmony (I hope that is right), and rehearsals. I have really enjoyed the camps, as you get to see bright young people, who are way better than I will ever be, in the early stages of their development.

The camp runs over a month and culminates in two performances. There is something about the summer time atmosphere that makes the whole thing a blast.

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

I've done Jazz Camp West (in California) for two years, and it is a blast: http://www.jazzcampwest.org/. You can pick six classes/ensembles from a large range of classes (e.g. sax technique, big band, beginning improvisation, multiple jazz combos, new orleans jazz, composing and arranging, etc.). Those fill up the morning and afternoon. Then there is an open mike before dinner, faculty concert after dinner, then an open jam session until...

It is one week, all adults and older teens (with teacher recommendation), and it is about $900-1100 depending on accommodations. It is at a YMCA camp in the redwoods.

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

Mike - I'm unclear about your request. You title the thread "Jazz camp for adults..." and then launch directly into referencing Aebersold Camps. Are you aware that these are a multi-aged camps? If no, then now you know. . If yes, why the title?

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

Mike,

You're in Washington...definitely check out Centrum's Jazz port townsend. It is all ages and levels from people just getting started to seasoned pros looking to hang. There are only three sax teachers but the camp is great. I attended three times and certainly will again in the future. Two years ago I spent the week working in a group of 6 with Eric Alexander and the year before with Jeff Hamilton...so you'll get to meet some cool guys. Plus it is near where you live and the end of the week is full of concert by the biggest names out there.

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

Just a comment about how many sax teachers may be at a camp/clinic, which may not necessarily be a good thing. I have noticed that at some mega-camps there are a number of sax teachers who might be excellent instructors, but nevertheless, as a participant, it might be similar to getting a graduate student vs. the sax professor at a large university. I have been to two clinics where there was a relatively small number of sax players but once it was with Dick Oats and once with Billy Harper - no other sax teachers. It doesn't get much better than that.

____________________________________________________ You can't blow it if you haven't lived it.

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

Attended three times the Aebersold summer school, one in England, the last two in Louisville, KY, and am looking fwd to go for the fourth time. My roommate is a Canadian guy, 68 if I remember well, who came something like 10 times and swears he'll come until he dies !

Alongside a well honed, if a bit hectic, technical and logistical organization, you'll certainly find there musical food for a whole year of sheeding and performing. After a cool short audition (playing some scales, a blues with the attending faculty at the piano and improvising a few bars on a standard) and written test (mainly on chord structure and chord/scale relation, an Aebersold favorite), you'll be assigned to a one-week theory course, level I to IV, with guys like Jamie A., David Baker, Dan Hearle or Pat Harbison) and a combo led by one of the 70 faculties, with two playing sessions per day. Among the saxists, last year were Eric Alexander, Antonio Hart, Greg Fishman, Gary Campbell, Tim Armacost and many others. There are also daily master classes (maybe a rather weaker point in the organization) and, as said, daily double fantastic lunch-time and evening concerts with the faculty: e.g., last year, a one-hour "cutting contest" between Antonio Hart and Jim Snidero, fantastic session with Eric Alexander, Jim Rotondi, etc. Unbelievable opportunity to be exposed daily to and freely discuss with some of the best musicians on the jazz scene: very friendly atmosphere throughout.

And I forgot: I found the mixture between kids in their younger teen, young adults and seniors very refreshing. All the youngsters I met were very polite and cooperative, with the exception of a very small bunch of rather arrogant high school - college level attendees, technically extremely skilled, who battle against each other every night in fierce post-concerts jams sessions with nothing played under 350 bpm; but some of these guys are really good !

Look fwd to meeting you this year; if you decide to attend, drop me a line as a PM.

Jacques

(Jazz) is a lot of wrong notes...especially people who play jazz saxophone. Spinal Tap. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hH1pw4EMe4g (1:20; 2:05)

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

Attended three times the Aebersold summer school, one in England, the last two in Louisville, KY, and am looking fwd to go for the fourth time. My roommate is a Canadian guy, 68 if I remember well, who came something like 10 times and swears he'll come until he dies !

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

Someone on another thread posted about one in Italy (not an Aebersold, but a different camp) that sounded really cool - I can't remember where it was, though.

Jazz Camp West is smaller scale - each year they have two sax instructors (this year it is Mary Fettig and Dayna Stephens - Mary is not a big name, but is a monster player and a very good teacher). They typically have two sax technique classes, one for beginners/intermediate and one for intermediate/advanced, with between 2 to 8 students per teacher.

Re: Jazz camp for adults, has anyone attended one of these recently?

I have attended one in France for several years - great course (and fun!) - multinational students ( over 16) , and several Americans attend.

Look up Dordogne Jazz Summer School, www.jazzschool-dordogne.co.uk , and see teh comments / videos - accommodation is rather "basic", but you are not there for the rooms! ( and you can stay off site locally), but teaching, food and atmosphere are "spot on ".